Dogs roadie concludes this afternoon in Merritt

It's the end of the road this afternoon for the Bulldogs (26-23-2-4, 4th Island) as they wrap up a three games in two and a half days road trip when they visit the Centennials (29-23-0-2, 3rd Interior) at the Nicola Valley Memorial Arena in Merritt.

This is the second meeting between the teams in just eight days, as the Bulldogs topped the Centennials 3-0 last Saturday at the Multiplex. The Cents had last night off, last seeing action Friday night in Penticton where they fell 4-1 to the Vees. The Bulldogs were in Penticton last night, where they fell 4-2 to the Vees, their third straight loss.

Points are important to both teams, but they are more important to the Centennials so again the Bulldogs need to be ready to face a desperate opponent. While the Dogs are fighting for positioning in the Island Division, the Centennials are fighting for their Playoff lives, 

It's a smaller than regulation ice surface in Merritt you can maybe see from the title picture at the very top of today's post, or the one below. That can be both a good thing, and a bad thing, at the end of a road trip. One one hand, there is less ground to cover to get from point A to point B. At the same time, things happen extremely fast and you have less time to make a play or make a hit or be hit, so the Dogs need to be ready from the outset. I'm happy to report that the heater pictured below has since been moved, so the broadcaster in the visiting booth now has a clear view of the ice surface. It was always a bit of a challenge, to say the least, to call a game in Merritt as you couldn't see half of it!

At the same time I'm saddened to hear that the old organ has been removed from the bottom of the stairs in the booth! I'm not sure it even worked, but it was just a little accessory that complemented the beauty that is the old barn in Merritt.

It's an early start today on Van Isle Ford Bulldogs Hockey on 93.3 The Peak FM  as the pregame show kicks off at 1:45 with the puck drop following at 2pm with myself and Bruce MacDonald calling the play-by-play and providing the colour commentary and analysis. 

If you aren't in radio listening range of 93.3 The Peak FM you can listen/watch the game by:

Listening Live on your computer: www.933thepeak.com
Listening Live on your SmartPhone : www.tunein.com/mobile/
Watching Live on your computer/SmartPhone www.fasthockey.com

Today's 2nd Intermission guest is former Bulldog Josh Bonar, fresh off a long playing career as a pro in both North America and Europe, now into the coaching game with the Burnaby Winter Club.

 Hammer